~ there is a whole other world behind your eyes …

A brisk morning and the heroes of Ithron are off adventuring. To face certain danger, guaranteed bad guys and general strife, they are off making sure people are saved from harm and do general good guy stuff. But what happens when the choices they make have consequences?

Tungdil ventured out at the behest of the Foresters of Carlech and the others sought to balance their actions in the dark elf valley by taking the fight to the other clan.

Player Mission: Gribbly monsters

The Foresters of Carlech are investigating a dubious group known as the Cult of Transmutation which are growing in numbers on the western side of the county. One of their own has fallen to this group, the leaders have a bounty on their heads, but the rest have not yet been proven dodgy enough to be outlawed. In fact it seems they are merely misled peasants who have been brainwashed! With the appearance of one of the known leaders and the declaration of one of the nobility to hunt the cult’s abominations for “sport”, the Foresters suspect a trap.

Travelling out of Carlech the company were met by a scout who reported on the goings on of the road. Lord Rebus Hightower and his company had come through some time ago, with a group of dwarves in red and a crazed bunch of people following in the intervening time. The crazed people turned out to be members of the Cult who Tungdil quizzed to determine their heretical leanings. Some of their number were terrible to behold, with tentacled faces and the ability to leap the company. Meeting the rearguard of Lord Hightower’s retinue, Judith was able to determine the identity of the lordling when they later met. The area swarmed with the transformed cultists and their companions, which the adventurers fought.

Lord Rebus was not concerned at the proven threat to his life (a letter had been recovered which urged the cultists to capture the lord) and was more concerned over his sport. When the Brodoch turned up and mentioned dragonkin the Black Knight was vaguely interested in this fearsome prey but Tungdil was adamant that the adventurers would go and sort out the dragonkin and retrieve a dwarven artefact in their keeping. Uncomfortable at ignoring the known threat to the nobleman Judith relented and the adventurers took their leave of the Lord and his retinue. Onward through cultists and past an encounter with a pair of elves of the Ferracunan forest, the adventurers came at last to a pair of Brodoch and the dragonkin beyond. Telling the Brodoch to scram Tungdil and company advanced up the hill and gave the scaly beasts what for, and retrieved the piece of the Book of Grudges Tungdil had been seeking. Pocketing it lest the Brodoch decide to search the dwarves for “their” relic, Judith carried the relic the rest of the way.

They arrived too late to save Lord Rebus from “willingly” choosing to accept the gifts of the Formarch, his noble visage now tentacled and gruesome to behold. Commanded by the mocking mage Johns (a known rogue and bountied outlaw and general bad guy) the Black Knight and his fellow attacked the adventurers who leapt to their defence. They brought the pair low, Shaun chasing after Johns into the woodland only to have the mage vanish before his very eyes, but Judith was unwilling to just let the nobleman die. Disarming him Judith tried to bring him to his senses, but was forced to defend herself with the Black Knight’s honour sword. Returned to Carlech in a shroud, the house of Hightower mourns the loss of its eldest, son and the newest knight-aspirant in Berwickshire now carries the hope that something can be done to restore the young knight to his former self. And with the help of other adventurers perhaps they will!

Monster Mission: Battling the Ix Tal’Shea and their “allies”

The Father of Kharach and Piran are unwilling to let the valley rest with the demonic followers of the Tal’She wandering unchecked and unchallenged. Concerned for the river of souls they encountered last time and the balance of power they approached the Churches for aid in funding a return to the valley.

The adventurers who travelled with them were:

Conchobar of the Scouts Guild;

Athryn Vinyar of the Mercenaries Guild;

Red Kent of the Guards;

Guy Lockless of the Blacksmiths Guild;

Mara Brack-on-Hill of the School of Demonology; Piran Lanistly of the School of Thaumaturgy;

Setting out the adventurers entered the valley as they had before and tracked into the southern vale. They located the missing (dead) scout with the final map piece, fought off a demon tracker that was seeking Conchobar and the demon that followed after it, and then forced themselves on through dark elves and their demon buddies. Interrupting a gathering of Tal’Shea and some dark elves, they tried to prevent the joining of the two groups in the coming war, whilst Conchobar went scouting around and had an accident.

Continuing on the Father of Kharach was able to lay a spell-casting skull to rest, allowing the rest of his companions across the bridge and further into dark elf territory. More dark elves and their demons waylaid them, a stash of supplies was uncovered and discarded, and a scout was located in the bushes with news for them – there were two ways up to the tower, though one was guarded by dozy guards and a possible ritual place for demons. Faced with a possible summoning circle or alert guards the adventurers chose to face the summoning circle and the spawn it had spat forth. They were unable to stop the demonologist from summoning the clan’s newest ally, but they pressed the attack and were able to undo her hard work before they picked up their fallen allies. Up the hill they climbed, surprising the dozy guards and coming upon the Tal’Shea and the other dark elves coming to an agreement of alliance – but they did not last long enough to bring word of their alliance to their brethren.

Having cut through a good proportion of the demon-loving dark elves it is hoped that both clans would be unwilling to continue their war with each other as their lick their wounds and try and rebuild their numbers. With peace, even a wary ceasefire, maybe the way into the old elven tomb will be open, and maybe the lingering spirit of the Griffin Knight who came this way once before will be waiting for them …